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Non-Tech : The Enron Scandal - Unmoderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: stockman_scott who wrote (168)	1/15/2002 2:44:42 PM
From: Yogizuna	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 3602

The lead partner does not appear to be the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree!

To: stockman_scott who wrote (168)	1/15/2002 3:16:19 PM
From: KLP	Respond to of 3602

Update: 2:21 PM ET...Andersen Fires Lead Enron Auditor washingtonpost.com By Marcy Gordohn AP Business Writer Tuesday, January 15, 2002; 2:21 PM WASHINGTON –– Accounting firm Arthur Andersen LLP said Tuesday it is firing the lead auditor of collapsed Enron Corp. and is putting three other auditors on leave as part of its inquiry into the destruction of Enron-related documents. Andersen said it also is replacing the management of its office in Houston, where Enron is based. Four Andersen partners in the Houston office "have been relieved of their management responsibilities," the accounting firm said. It cited the deletion of thousands of e-mail messages and the "rushed disposal" of many paper documents. The lead auditor directed an expedited effort to destroy documents in Houston, Andersen said. In a desperate Nov. 9 e-mail to other secretaries, the lead auditor's assistant said, "Stop the shredding." A day earlier, Andersen had received a federal government subpoena for the documents. The firm said it will fire any other employees found to have participated in the improper destruction of documents, which it disclosed Thursday. The Securities and Exchange Commission has been investigating Andersen's role in Enron's complex accounting, including questionable partnerships that kept about $500 million in debt off the energy company's books and allowed Enron executives to profit from the arrangements. The SEC's enforcement director, Stephen M. Cutler, said last week the agency was widening the scope of its investigation to include Andersen's destruction of documents. The Big Five accounting firm said it was firing the lead Enron auditing partner, David B. Duncan, and placing Enron auditors Thomas H. Bauer, Debra A. Cash and Roger D. Willard on administrative leave. Partners removed from the Houston office are D. Stephen Goddard Jr., Michael M. Lowther, Gary B. Goolsby and Michael C. Odom. "This was a painful decision but it was absolutely the right thing to do," Joseph Berardino, Andersen chief executive officer, said. "We are prepared to take all appropriate steps necessary to maintain confidence in the integrity of our firm." Andersen disclosed Monday that an in-house lawyer spelled out the firm's document destruction policy for auditors on Oct. 12, four days before Enron announced third-quarter losses of hundreds of millions of dollars. The Andersen lawyer, Nancy Temple, e-mailed the policy to a partner in the firm's office in Houston. Berardino testified to Congress last month that Andersen notified Enron's audit committee on Nov. 2 of "possible illegal acts within the company." He did not mention Andersen's destruction last fall of thousands of documents related to Enron, which the SEC, the Justice Department and congressional investigators are seeking in their probes. © 2002 The Associated Press ******************* Enron's Lead Auditor to Be Dismissed Jan 15 1:29pm ET CHICAGO (Reuters) - Andersen, the accounting firm under fire for its handling of collapsed energy trader Enron Corp.'s books, on Tuesday said it would dismiss the lead partner involved in the Enron audit. Andersen, which last week revealed that staff associated with the audit had destroyed a large number of documents in the case, also said three other partners responsible for the Enron engagement had been placed on leave. "Although the firm is still working to collect all the facts, it has learned that at the direction of the lead partner an expedited effort to destroy documents in Houston was undertaken," Andersen said in a statement. "The effort was initiated following an urgent meeting the lead partner called on Oct. 23 to organize the expedited effort to dispose of Enron-related documents." This meeting occurred shortly after the lead partner learned that Enron had received a request for information from the SEC about its financial accounting and reporting, Andersen said. siliconinvestor.com